Thomas Hand, the father of 9-year-old Emily Hand, who was kidnapped from Kibbutz Be'eri and released 50 days later, told the Daily Mirror about his daughter's rehabilitation in an interview. "The best sign for me is that she’s starting to sing again. Her voice is getting stronger. She smiles all day. She’s laughing and joking around, and dancing a bit," he said.
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Hand's story aroused special interest in the world media due to an interview he gave CNN at the beginning of the war, when he still thought his daughter was murdered in the October 7 attack. In the interview, he admitted that he preferred this scenario rather than her being held captive. In the end it turned out that Emily was indeed held as a hostage by Hamas. Hand was reunited with Emily after her release but his ex-wife Narkis Hand, who was a mother figure for Emily, was killed.
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Emily Hand holding her own kidnapped poster after being released from Hamas captivity
( Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit)
Thomas Hand, a practicing Catholic who came to Israel in 1992 to volunteer in Be'eri, promised to give Emily "the best Christmas ever," giving her "double the usual number of presents" after she missed her birthday on November 17 while still in captivity.
Hand said that after losing weight in captivity, Emily's appetite has returned. He also said that his daughter was not kept in the tunnels, but was moved between houses. The first thing Emily asked for after she got back was the phone so she could watch a music video by Beyoncé, her favorite singer.
Hand said in an interview that people who pass them by on the street call his daughter a "hero." Despite the terrible disaster they went through, he wants to return to Kibbutz Be'eri, which he calls "the closest thing to heaven."